You Don't Live to Work, You Work to Live intends to create a new and improved way of living for the people of Porto. This project aims to address healthy living conditions through Portuguese textile heritage in conjunction with the current housing crisis.

The project aims to establish the running threads between the folklore of the 'Love Handkerchief' and the rebirth of the textile industry born from the COVID pandemic.

The ‘Love Handkerchief’ is a tradition from the region of Porto. When a girl liked a boy, she would hand stitch a handkerchief with icons of love and give this to him. If the love was reciprocated the boy would blow his nose in public into the carefully handcrafted gift. The act of cleansing oneself is seen as an act of love.

During the COVID pandemic, Portugal’s textile industry was instrumental in providing protective apparel both domestically and on the international market. The pandemic provided an impetus for an awoken powerhouse of possibilities.

The project takes place along the banks of the Douro River, focusing on implementing a new housing scheme of white, biomorphic architecture designed as an extension of Porto's industrial-worker housing typology.